Peet Not

While my unfortunate sister is stuck in Arizona, my base of operations is the great state of California, more specifically, Cal Poly. On campus we have only a few chain restaurants, fortunately enough they are all in on the pumpkin goodness. Unfortunately for me, that means spending far too much money, but it's really a necessity if I'm expected to become a master on all things pumpkin.

For today, let's focus on the on place that has always been a disappointment: Peet's Coffee and Tea.



I know there are plenty of die-hard Peet's fans out there, but I'm certain they only enjoy it for the fact that it's not the evil corporation Starbucks (the rest of whose products should show up here in due time). Also, I might be a little biased by the fact that I really don't care for the taste of coffee.

Last year, I remember going to Peet's as soon as October rolled around and they had about the same number of pumpkin-y options as Starbucks, including a pumpkin spice latte, a pumpkin Freddo, pumpkin muffin, and pumpkin scone. I went out of my way to try each of these and every last one of them was a disappointment. I'd go into detail but I didn't take a very distinct mental note, but I certainly didn't go back again that year, especially when Jamba Juice and Einstein's Bagels were right across the street.

However, about two days ago I was getting back from the gym pretty late at night and I was craving something to help put back all the calories I had just burned off. Since Peet's was the only place open, I decided to give them another chance. Since it was late they didn't have their muffins or scones, but I did order a pumpkin spice Freddo with extra milk instead of coffee. I had high hopes for this, but as soon as I saw it I knew things hadn't changed. First off, the drink was almost white. I don't think it's too much to ask for something pumpkin-flavored to at least have some sort of orange tint, it really adds to the whole experience. But if the drink didn't look like it had pumpkin in it, it sure didn't taste any better. If I hadn't seen them pumping the flavored syrup into the cup I would have sworn they just left it out. The highlight of the thing was the pile of whipped cream, after that it would have been best to just throw it away. Last year when I tried the same thing, I remember it having too much of a coffee taste, and I'd almost rather have that back.

All-in-all, it might be a struggle to go back and try to find a muffin or scone.

Coming soon: Jamba Juice Pumpkin Smash (!), Einstein's Pumpkin Bagel, and more Starbucks